A Really Weird Situation
by BanesBloom
Summary: I've been plucked out of my universe, and dropped into the one of Mass Effect. Now I have to survive near death encounters, some brutal training, and some really weird friends. This should be interesting.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N - Hello everybody! BanesBloom here, with a SI no less! Mad props to MayZts for the editing, and other technical 'elp, and to iNf3ctioNZ and DelVarO for the inspiration, and if you haven't checked theirs out, go do so, they're frikin' amazing!**

**And if your here from my FE Fic, which I find unlikely, it's on hiatus, for now, probably...**

**Meh, your here for a story, right? Without further ado, here you go!**

Hi, I'm Corbin Grayson, and I've been put into a really weird situation. This is an, admittedly very unprofessional, account of the story that followed that situation. Get ready, cause this is one hell of a weird ride.

-Line-Break-

I pull my coat close to me as a car pulls by, creating a cold breeze, damn I wish the bus stop hadn't moved so far away! Not that only wearing jeans, an orange tee, my coat, and fedora is really helping.

I pull out my iPod and go to change the music but I end up crashing into someone, dropping my iPod, my hat, and effectively falling on my ass, to boot.

"Sorry 'bout that" I say, getting a good look at the guy I ran into as he bends down to pick up my hat. He's tall, lanky, and pale- whoa, he's almost paler then I am! And trust me, that's pretty hard to do -His face is probably his weirdest feature though, with one green eye, one blue, Pitch black hair, and a seemingly perpetual grin. Creepy...

"No problem boyo, you're actually the person I was looking for." he says handing me my fedora, and grinning wider.

"Yeah, sorry agai- Wait, what?" I say, doing a verbal double-take, "Do I know you?"

"Nope! I'd be worried if you did" He says, laughing at his own joke.

"Then what do need with me?" Creepiness of the situation is increasing rapidly

"I need you to save the galaxy."

What?

I'm sitting there, waiting for a punch line, him to start laughing, _something_. But nothing comes. He's just standing there, with a straight face. So I use sarcasm to try to get an answer.

"The only thing I can see that might pose threat to anything, let alone the galaxy, is you" I comment, "Unless that squirrel is secretly planning to take over the universe, we should be fine."

"Ever the sarcastic I see" He says, looking un-phased by my comment, "Either way, the reapers are coming and without your help Shepard won't be able to survive them." He starts tapping away at something on his wrist as I just stand there, utterly perplexed.

Reapers? Shepard? Like, Mass Effect? Is this guy flippin' insane? Or dumb? Whelp, I'm not sticking around to find out.

"Right, well, while your busy tapping your watch, I'll just be going now..." I say as I start to slip away, don't know what that was about but-

"Oi!" The crazy Mass Effect fan boy yells behind me "Didn't you hear me? Shepard needs your help!"

His hand clamps down on my shoulder, in an effort to keep me here. At least buy me dinner first!

"And you need mental help, now let-"

Suddenly there's a flash of light, my heart jumps into my throat as I feel like I'm riding the worst roller-coaster designed by man, then I feel like I've been hit by a truck.

And then...there's nothing.

-Line-Break-

"Frikin' 'ell..." I grumble, sitting up and holding my head, still hurting like no other. I look around and it appears as if I'm in the cleanest back alley known to exist.

"Corbin! Good to see your awake!" says a cheery voice behind me.

I look back and there his is, standing in the entrance to the alley way we're in, with that annoying perpetual smile still plastered on his face.

"You!" I say, putting as much venom as I can into one word, "You'd better start explaining what the 'ell you just did to me, or-" I try to get up as I say this and stop, feeling like I'm about to puke my guts out. And much to my dismay, that's exactly what I do.

"Yeah, you probably shouldn't move too much in the next few minutes, Jumping Sickness, and all that..." He says.

"Couldn't've mentioned that before?" I growl, leaning up against the nearest wall, and trying to ignore what's over in the corner, "Just what the 'ell did you do to me?"

"Haven't you been paying attention, I dimension jumped us onto to the Citadel-" He starts

"More with mass effect..." I grumble, "unless you can give me proof, I'm just going to assume your-"

Mid-rant he stepped aside, revealing the busy street behind him, bustling with...aliens, and Humans. Asari, Turians, and even the odd Salarian or Krogan pass by each other on the street, just going about their business, a Turian and an Asari even sit on a bench, in front of what looks like a restaurant, laughing. I look up and there are floating cars flying about, going to and from the different wards and the presidium, and just those are stretching out like a mural painted across the sky, the gigantic arms of the citadel, the presidium ring off to my left. I just stand there for a bit, taking it all in.

"…Crazy." I finally manage to finish, after picking up my jaw from the floor.

This crazy-ass bastard _actually_ brought me in to the Mass Effect universe!

"This- I- How- I can't even..." Frankly I think the shock of being on the Citadel has taken away my ability to form a complete sentence.

"I know right?" The bastard- I really need this guy's name -says, sounding rather amused.

"...Okay, that counts as proof," I say after a bit, stepping back into the alleyway, "but I'm still confused, why did you bring me here?"

"Shepard needs help." he repeats, sounding a bit annoyed about having to say it again, "And you're the one to help her."

Her? A FemShep? Interesting… I'll ask about that later.

"How am I supposed to help her, eh? I can't fight, I've never shot a gun, that and I'm _fourteen_!" I ask, incredulously.

"Well, that was going to be a problem, but I, uh, may have… miss-calibrated when I brought you here" he says, sheepishly.

I glare at him, "Miss-calibrated?"

"Ah... yeah, well your kinda, maybe um...five years early."

"..._What?_" If he doesn't change his answer, I'm going to hurt him so much I'll have a wanted poster like I'm on Pandora.

"Hey you were the one walking away when I told you she needed help!" he says, trying to pin it on me.

I sigh, frak it. "Figures..." Okay, time to play 20 Questions, "Why does she need help? According to the story, she beats the reapers, why does she need me?"

"Because...to put it simply, things have changed from canon. There's a group that, apparently, doesn't like happy endings. They've made the story, the timeline if you will, unstable. Shepard could die, and the reapers could win." He says, deadly serious, even his smiles gone, "This cannot happen, and you're going to make sure it doesn't."

Damn, no pressure.

"Look, this is a lot to get your head around, but trust me, she needs you" he continues, "now, and you need to make a choice. Are you going to stay? Or, I can drop you off back home."

Red pill or Blue?

I sit there for a bit, weighing my choices. If Shepard doesn't survive past ME1, well ME2 considering she dies after the first one anyway, then the galaxy will just keep repeating the cycle. And I agree that cannot happen. But am I, personally, up to it? 'Ell no I'm not...oh well.

"I'll do it, I'll keep her alive." I promise.

"Good," He gives a relieved sigh, "okay time to get started"

-Line-Break-

"Okay, that should be all." He says after a while of kitting me out. Well if you count a credit chit, an Omni-tool, the shittiest he could afford, I assume, and a combat knife to protect myself with. Though he did put about ten thousand credits into my credit account, so maybe he's not all bad.

"There's a hotel around the corner and a bit, get a room there, though you should probably find somewhere permanent soon..." He pauses, presumably going over a mental checklist, "anything I'm forgetting?"

"You never gave me a name" I say, adjusting the Omni-tool on my wrist, it's basically just a bracelet, so that works fine with me.

"My name?" He asks, looking lost in thought for a while. "Just call me The Watcher."

"Yeah, cause that's not creepy as 'ell" I mumble, eliciting a chuckle from the watcher.

"That's what they all say" He smirks.

"So, 'Watcher' anything else you need me to do?" I ask sarcastically.

"Aside from becoming badass enough to get to Shepard," He shoots back, equally sarcastic, "If that's not too hard?"

Suddenly his watch-like-thing starts beeping, causing him to start tapping rapidly again.

"Shit, I've gotta run, looks like the anti-happy-endings are causing trouble." He states

"Oh boy!" I exclaim, in mock excitement, "That sounds like barrels of fun!"

He just gives me a look, sighs, and starts walking away.

"Just get a room at the hotel, and a job, ill check on you later" He shouts over his shoulder as he walks away.

"Well, I suppose I've gotta start somewhere" I mumble to myself as I walk out of the alleyway, getting weird looks from some of the passer-by, and around the corner. The start of my long journey.

**Thus ends the start to a long journey, hopefully I can keep up. I'll try to update on a semi-regular basis, I've already got the second chapter in the works, so there's that.**

**Either way, that's all I've got to say ~Bane**

"… **So I even get to edit your ANs because I get to convert it? :D *Capitalizes more I's and such*" - May**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N Hey, I'm back with a second chapter, and I forgot to say some stuff last time. One, Grayson is just an alias, not like I can just give out my name right? And the Disclaimer.**

******Disclaimer: I don't own any characters in Mass Effect, or the universe itself. All original characters shown in this story are mine, though.**

And of course, as soon as I walk into the medium-sized white-washed lobby, I'm getting weird looks from every sentient creature in the room. Hell, even the receptionist s looking at me funny! Damn, I really need some new clothes. Either way, I need a bed more, so I head up to the receptionist, ignoring all the staring people. Don't you guys know that's rude?

"Hello sir, how may I help you?" The Asari behind the counter asks, switching to a polite smile. Guess you can't kick someone out for dressing weird.

"I'd like a room, please" I state simply, sliding my new credit chit across the desk.

"Of course, one moment please" She says, scanning my chit and tapping away at the terminal in front of her, "there you go, sir, that'll be 250 a night, you're on the third floor, here's your key" she finishes, handing back my chit and what looks like a key card with the number '16' on it.

Frak! 250 credits a night? That's only, what, 40 nights I've got until I'm on the streets? Great.

"Thanks" I mumble, taking both my chit and the card and head to the elevator. Thank god it's empty.

I step in, press the '3' button and I start to think. Why the hell am I so calm? I've just been kidnapped, plopped into a universe that was just a bunch of pixels up until a few hours, told to save that universe, and that I'm five years early to do that. Usually that constitutes a reaction. Maybe it's the Watcher; maybe he's having an effect on me. Maybe I'm just excited about being in the Mass Effect universe...Meh, maybe I'm just tired.

_Ding!_

Huh? Oh, my floor.

I step out into the bright white corridor- why's everything in the future so white? - slightly darker doors lining both walls all the way down to the end where it looks like it stops at a T-junction.

I look to the door on my right, a '1' in the middle of the door. Guess I start here.

I adjust the shoulder strap of my messenger bag and start walking. '12'...'13'...'15'- ah! Here we go, room 16. I slide the key card into the slot just above the currently red entrance button. And there we go! The button immediately turns green after I slip the card in. I pull the card out and punch the button, leaving me in the short hallway into my new hotel room.

There's a door, presumably to the bathroom, straight to my left, a bed pushed up against the back wall next to what looks like the exit to a balcony, a desk, chair, and a dresser with a TV attached to the wall over it. Over all it's a pretty good hotel room, especially considering the alternative was an alley.

I walk forward, tossing my bag, flute, and coat onto the desk. Suddenly I feel really tired, and after everything that's happened, that's not that surprising, so, without even turning out the lights, I fall back on to the bed, pull my fedora over my face, and promptly pass out.

-Line-Break-

_Blip!_

"Wha...?"

_Blip!_

"Bloody alarm clock..." I grumble, sitting up ready to hit the damn thing...then it all comes flooding back, the Watcher, Shepard, my promise, "oh...right"

_Blip!_

I look down at my left wrist, the light next to the button that brings up the actual Omni-tool is flashing. Not that I know what that means, so I just push the button to bring up the hologram. A window pops up immediately, 'You have 1 new message'. A new message? This should be interesting...

_Hey boyo, get off your lazy ass and do something productive!_

_Your Friendly Neighborhood Watcher._

Figures. Well, first I could use a shower, and then I guess I'll get to looking for a job and some new clothes.

I head over to the bathroom and start up a shower, the water rather refreshing on my skin. But since I haven't bought any new clothes, I'm forced to change into my old ones. Well, I know what's first on my to-do list.

From there I head out, leaving my all but my chit, key card, and hat- though I doubt that'll be going anywhere anytime soon.

-Line-Break-

After a while of searching, and getting lost, I finally found a clothes store. And after a bit of negotiating and convincing with the store clerk, I finally managed to snag an older pair of black cargo pants, a white tee, and some boots.

So now that I've 'gotten off my ass' as the Watcher so eloquently put it, I'm gonna look around, I mean, I'm on _the_ Citadel, who wouldn't want to see everything? And I know just where to start.

There's an armor store, 'Abels Armors', not the most original name, mind you, but I had always loved the different armor types, so this is as good a start as any. I head over and go through the door leading into a room with a counter on the back wall with a kiosk on it, and a few displays up against the walls. The place looks deserted though, there aren't any customers, and there's no one behind the counter. Just as I'm walking towards the displays, the door behind me slides open.

"Who are you?" Says a feminine voice, surprise evident. "What are you doing in here, we're closed."

I spin around, and find myself face to face with a girl, around my age, with shoulder-length white hair and red eyes, staring at me suspiciously and hefting a large box in her hands.

"I- the door was open, I just thought-" I start, panicking slightly, great, arrested by C-Sec on my second day.

"Eh, it's fine," She cuts me off, taking the box over to the counter, "you're panicking too much to be lying anyway, nice clothes by the way." she chuckles.

I stare at here for a moment; did she just brush off a potential robbery? Then I notice the predator pistol attached to her belt. Well that kinda explains that.

"So, are you here to buy, look, or for the job?" She says, snapping me out of my thoughts. Did she just say job?

"You guys have a job open?" I ask, did I just get really, really lucky?

"Yeah, sort of," She explains from behind the counter, "the main job is delivery, picking up and delivering armor and tools, that kinda stuff, though you'd be doing odd jobs around the store, as well."

Yup, really, really lucky.

"That'd be perfect!" I say, I can play lackey if it'll get me some more credits.

"Sweet, let's just run a background check, and then the jobs yours." She says, pulling up her Omni-tool.

Background check? Ruh-Roh.

"Name?" She inquires.

"Uh, Corbin Grayson."

"Nice to meet you Grayson, I'm Monica, Monica Abel." She pauses for a moment, "Yup, you check out, the jobs yours, congrats."

Wait, what? But I don't have a background, I don't even exist here! Did the Watcher give me a story?

"Thanks! When do I start?" I ask, still rather shocked about the whole background thing.

"You start tomorrow, come in at nine, I'll introduce you to the owner, and see if you get to keep the job." She says, smirking.

"I thought you said I had the job?" I ask, confused.

"Eh, my mom's picky about the people that work for her." She shrugs, "I'm sure you'll be fine though."

I nod heading to the exit, "Thanks Monica!" I say over my shoulder, tossing a wave as well. Sweet! That's my new job, mostly, sorted. I think I'm going to head home. If I don't get lost.

Why did I say that?

-Line-Break-

"Ugh." I grunt falling onto my bed.

Of course as I made my way home, I get utterly, hopelessly lost, I had to ask a group of Asari and humans for directions, not that that stopped me from wandering around for a few more hours. Eventually I came across it by chance, at around 10:30 at night. So now I'm beat. But before I fall asleep, I wanted to find out a bit more on Shepard.

I sit up and bring up my Omni-tool, going to the extranet's search engine, and type in 'Shepard Alliance'. Immediately it pulls up information on both Akuze and the Batarian raid on Mindor. Huh, I expected the general Spacer/War Hero background, interesting. I also manage to find a picture of her, looks like it's mainly the default appearance, red hair, green eyes, and a small scar on her bottom lip being the only deviation. Cool, I always thought she looked badass that way.

Either way, I'm too tired to do much of anything else, after getting lost for that long, I need a break. At least I'm making progress right?

**"I TAKE ALL CREDIT FOR THE NAME GRAYSON. I can do that, right?" - May  
"Well, it was yours in the first place, so I suppose :P" – Bane**


End file.
